Pine Ridge hosts Alzheimer's, dementia community meetings

It's a time to laugh, cry, vent your anger or just grieve. That range of emotions is typical for caregivers of those who suffer from Alzheimer's disease or dementia.

BY DWIGHT DAVISThe Dispatch

It's a time to laugh, cry, vent your anger or just grieve.That range of emotions is typical for caregivers of those who suffer from Alzheimer's disease or dementia.Recently, Pine Ridge Health and Rehabilitation Center of Thomasville began sponsoring a community meeting to educate, support and inform anyone whose life is impacted by the diseases.The meeting is from 5 to 7 p.m. the second Tuesday in each month at Holly Hill Wesleyan Church on West Holly Hill Road in Thomasville."It just doesn't affect those who have the disease, it affects everyone around them," explains nurse Rebecca Owens, the staff development coordinator at Pine Ridge. "When it begins affecting your health, it's time to get help."The community meetings began this past November. "About six is the most we've had at once," Owens said. "Some of them are family members. We do have speakers who talk about the diseases and its processes. Dementia is a big part of us as we get older."Owens notes that those who attend the meetings find support with each other, in addition to learning from the professionals present."Everyone who has participated so far has thanked us every time and said they got some extra support from it. We offered a little incentive, a door prize and refreshments. We tell people to bring their tissues. Sometimes they need to cry and get it out."Janice Hedrick, Pine Ridge administrator, generated the idea of the community meeting."We have an Alzheimer's unit and have worked with residents and families for a long time," Hedrick explains. "We partnered with the (Alzheimer's) association … for the project itself. We wanted to help those who can't manage the needs of others themselves. It does take its toll. We all came together, met and hammered out what we could do to let the community know what we could do to provide support."Owens says topics of the meetings vary. "We talk about things they all go through at home and what steps to take. We let them know that what works for one individual may not work for everybody. "We have discussion time to allow people to vent personal things that they can share and talk to others about some things they have experienced."There are degrees or stages of Alzheimer's and dementia. Hedrick points out that not all victims of the diseases are at the point where they need long-term care, but caregivers should be educated about various aspects of care.At the meetings caregivers and family members can learn about such issues as wondering, food habits and bathing habits.Both Pine Ridge professionals agree that those who place their loved ones in long-term care experience an overriding degree of guilt. The meetings are for them as well."The hardest thing to do is look at a loved one, and you forget they have brain damage," Owens says. "They have short-term memories and may ask you 25 times what they had for breakfast."Everyone needs help in making decisions. Sometimes we need to talk about when to let go. We talk about making bigger decisions, too, such as the do not resuscitate event."Those interested in attending the community meetings should contact Pine Ridge at 475-8425.Dwight Davis can be reached at 249-3981, ext, 226 or at dwight.davis@the-dispatch.com.